This Woman Looks Like A Barbie Doll, But The Reason For Her Transformation Has A Deeper Meaning

Whats considered beautiful is different all around the world, but one of the most iconic images of ideal beauty in the last century is Mattel’s Barbie doll. Mattel released Barbie in 1959, and since then, over a billion dolls have been sold around the world. The figure of a tall woman with long, platinum blonde hair, big blue eyes, large breasts, and a thin waist has dominated Western beauty for decades.

And so it’s no surprise that when we laid our eyes on Ukrainian beauty Valeria Lukyanova, our first thought was “she looks just like Barbie.” Read on to learn about the Eastern Bloc Barbie, her rise to fame, and the reason why she absolutely hates the nickname.

Meet Valeria Lukyanova, The Eastern Bloc Barbie

When you place a Barbie doll side-by-side with Valeria Lukyanova, the resemblance is uncanny. Her porcelain skin, perfect makeup, tiny nose, and platinum straight blonde hair is like looking at a lifesize doll. It’s no wonder that this beauty from the Eastern Bloc has been compared to a Barbie doll.

Even her actions and presence are doll-like. She sits up pin-straight and walks with incredible posture. Her head is often slightly cocked to one side, with a small smile permanently etched onto her face. Many people have commented that she has a translucent, almost dead, look in her eyes. It’s no wonder that her appearance has enthralled us.

She Rose To Fame After A Pageant Win

Valeria was relatively unknown in the Western world until one fateful night that changed her life. In 2007, she competed for the title of Miss Diamond Crown of the World. The pageant is unique because it has no rules against surgery or body modification like many other pageants do.

In comparison to the other women competing, Valeria stood out. Even though she didn’t have the over-the-top Barbie makeup yet, her tall, thin figure matched with her long blonde hair set her apart. She won the beauty contest. Valeria didn’t know it then, but her pageant win would set her on track for worldwide fame.

Photoshoots And Interviews Gave Her The Nickname “Human Barbie”

It was only after she won the title of Miss Diamond Crown of the World that people began to compare her to a Barbie. The pageant win made her an instant celebrity in the Russian media. She began doing interviews, photo shoots, and even erotic photos. For many people in Russia, Valeria was an image of the ideal beauty.

All the fame in Russia quickly spread to the Western world. Her first photo shoot outside of Russia was on the blog Jezebel. The first major magazine to interview her was V Magazine, where they titled their article “Living Doll.” It was then that people began to compare Valeria to a Barbie doll.

Many Believed She Was CGI Or Photoshopped At First

The Western world was so shocked by Valeria’s picture-perfect looks that they questioned it at first. People didn’t even think she was a real human being. Some people theorized that she was a CGI creation years ahead of her time.

Others were completely convinced that all her pictures were photoshopped. Her nearly-translucent skin and razor-sharp features were just too perfect to be real. If you’re one of the many who can barely believe she’s a real person then keep reading to see how Valeria achieved her doll-like figure and picture-perfect face.

Her Beauty Routine Is Extensive

It’s not like Valeria achieved her Barbie-like look overnight. It took years of transformation and effort to perfect the shocking look. Valeria uses makeup to blur her skin to look like porcelain. Thanks to YouTube and Sephora, many of the contouring and makeup tricks she uses are well-known. But back in 2007, her makeup looked futuristic.

She wears contact lenses to cover her naturally green-gray eyes. She claims that her body is naturally thin and that she achieves her extreme waistline through waist training and a particular diet. She’s been on a strict raw vegetarian all-liquid diet since 2012.

Valeria Can Have Trouble With Her Body Proportions

If you’re comparing her to a Barbie doll, you can’t help but wonder how she is able to stand. People have studied Barbie and said that if the doll was real, it would have trouble walking on her tiny feet, and she would barely be able to lift her oversized head with her thin neck.

Valeria isn’t much different. In 2012 she officially stated that she weighs 100 pounds. In a photo shoot, Valeria told the cameraman that her “fragile” neck couldn’t hold up her “big” head. Despite these similarities to Barbie, continue on to see why she hates the nickname.

She Actually Hates The Nickname “Human Barbie”

Even though the Western media has given her the nickname “Human Barbie,” Valeria has been very open about the fact she despises the nickname. She said that she thinks the nickname is “a little degrading and insulting.” Even though she considers the name to be offensive, she will use it as part of her personal brand and image because her fans have “requested” it.

She feels like she has to “comply with it because it’s become part of my aesthetic image” but she doesn’t have to be happy about it. Why would a woman who looks so much like a doll hate to be called one? Read on to find out.

She Never Set Out To Look Like A Doll

Valeria is against the living doll nickname because it was never her intention to look like Barbie. It’s easier to understand this idea when you see her as she is in this photo with more natural makeup. At first glance, you might think she was a girl who loved to play with dolls, and that’s what affected her beauty ideals. In reality, it’s much more complex.

Valeria is simply trying to look like what she personally believes the ideal female to look like, and that ideal is much deeper than simply trying to look like a doll.

She’s Had Less Plastic Surgery Than People Think

Valeria’s look is so startling that it’s hard to believe she hasn’t had extensive plastic surgery. But Valeria has insisted throughout the years that much of her unique look is thanks to makeup.

In an interview with TooFab, Valeria opened up about her plastic surgery, exclaiming that she has only had procedures to her body, not her face. “From the age of 14 years, I have not particularly changed, except for body and hair color,” she said in the intimate interview.

It wasn’t until Valeria posted a makeup-free selfie that people began to believe her.

Valeria Posts a Makeup-Free Selfie

Valeria is often photographed in full glam mode. When she dons her usual makeup she looks completely ethereal and leaves many wondering how she achieves such a unique, otherworldly image. While many wrote it off as extensive facial plastic surgery, Valeria shut down the haters when she posted this makeup-free selfie on her Instagram.

While Valeria’s beauty is undeniable, she doesn’t look quite like the Human Barbie doll everyone knows her as. Going makeup free isn’t the norm for the model who told TooFab that as soon as she wakes up she likes to do her makeup since she finds it “motivating.”

Continue on to find out how Valeria’s childhood and teenage years made her into the human doll she is today.

She Had Humble Origins

Many girls that grow up to look like Valeria come from major metropolitan areas like Los Angeles or Miami. Valeria had almost the exact opposite upbringing. She was born in a Tiraspol, Moldova in 1985 when Moldova was still part of the Soviet Union. Her mother worked in the military sector, and her father was a part-time disc jockey.

Even though Tiraspol is the second-largest city in Moldova, it only has a population of about 100,000 people, which is only about as big as Roanoke, Virginia. Growing up in one of Europe’s poorest countries and a relatively small town made life hard for Valeria.

A Strict Father Made Her Begin To Act Out

Both her father and her Siberian-born grandfather were very strict throughout her childhood. She disliked the rules, but couldn’t do much about it until the Soviet Union collapsed and Moldova gained independence in 1991. After that, she began to explore different, modern cultures.

She first began to rebel against her parents at age 13. Like most teenagers around the world, Valeria’s first act was changing her appearance. Valeria might be a platinum-blonde beauty now, but keep reading to find out what the first thing she did to change her looks.

Her First Major Transformation Was Going Goth

Photo credit: Mustafa Ciftci / Anadolu Agency / Getty Images

Her first act against her strict father was going goth. Goth was a huge trend in the ’90s in the former Soviet states, so she died her naturally light-brown hair jet black. Other kids would tease her at school for being a witch, but the criticism made her double down on the phase. She wasn’t just wearing all black at this time — she began adding spikes and wearing fake fangs.

As she grew older, she slowly began to move away from the goth look by learning about different makeup and hair techniques. Valeria began to wear more theatrical and over-the-top hair and makeup.

She Moved To Ukraine And Everything Changed

After spending years acting out against her father in Moldova, she decided to pack up and move at age 16. Valeria moved to Odessa, Ukraine. The city is located close to Ukraine’s border with Russia and is right along the Black Sea. Odessa is “notoriously sex-obsessed,” but not in a fun way.

The city has a booming sex-trade that includes both prostitutes and illegal brides. At the time, Odessa was known for being a place where a Western man can come to search for a Ukrainian wife. Valeria never got into the sex industry, but living in Odessa at age 16 did shape her appearance.

Her Views Of Beauty And Womanhood Began To Shift

The idea that Odessa is a place for Western men to find ideal Ukrainian wives meant that there was a strict view of the perfect woman. The Ukrainian wives promised, “femininity that the West had supposedly lost.” Men could come to Odessa to find someone who is fragile, pliable, submissive, and very feminine.

Valeria slowly began to transform into the ultimate version of what an ideal Eastern European woman was supposed to be. In Odessa, a woman who was willing to change her entire appearance to fit these standards seemed to be exactly what men would dream about. Now that Odessa had shaped Valeria’s view of beauty, what would she change about her appearance first?

The First Big Move Was Leaving Behind The Goth Look

The beauty standards of Odessa didn’t mean just being feminine and submissive. It also meant looking like the ideal Eastern European woman. Valeria has said that she considers herself to be Eastern Baltic but aims to look more Nordic. Those two ethnicities both idolize pale women with blonde hair.

That means her first big move after she moved to Odessa was to ditch the jet-black hair and goth style. She replaced it with her trademark platinum blonde locks and trendier fashion. Dying her hair blonde didn’t automatically make her look like a living doll, but what Valeria did next got her a step closer.

Her Transformation Increased After Meeting Her Husband

Dying her hair platinum blonde must have been a good idea because it caught the eye of a local man, Dmitry. Dmitry was an Odessa local who was the son of one of her father’s closest friends. He had become wealthy from the construction business and was looking to find a wife.

After Valeria began dating Dmitry, the timeline for her transformation into a living doll picked up. She no longer had to work, and thanks to Dmitry, Valeria was now able to pay for breast implants. Her breast enlargement surgery is the only cosmetic surgery that Valeria has ever admitted to getting.

She Has Some Controversial Opinions

All of that beauty and fame doesn’t come without some backlash. In an interview with GQ, she was very open to the concept of eugenics. When discussing the idea of beauty and how it has changed over the years because of increased “race mixing,” Valeria said that we all look different “thanks to degeneration.”

Valeria made it clear that her idea of beauty stemmed from the 1950s and 1960s when people were still beautiful without surgery. It’s not just these extreme and unpopular opinions that makes Valeria unique. Next, find out what Valeria hopes to be known for in the future.

One Day She Hopes To Be Known As More Than The “Human Barbie”

Since she hates the nickname so much, it’s no surprise that she wants to be known for more than just her looks. Valeria achieved a bachelor’s degree in architecture from Odessa State Academy of Constructions and Architecture. She is also a composer and opera singer who focuses on new-age music.

Valeria has made it clear that even though she does not consider herself a feminist, she does not want to start a family or have any children. She believes that when people have children, they are selfish because they use the child to fulfill their own ambitions.

She Loves New-Age Teaching

One space where she’s found a passion is new-age teaching. Since she went goth in the early ’90s, Valeria has always been on the brink of new trends. She is a lecturer and instructor at the School of Out-Of-Body Travel. You can see many of her instructional videos on YouTube.

She even goes by a different spiritual name: Amatue. According to Valeria, the name appeared to her in a dream and has helped her personal journey. Under the name Amatue, Valeria has also published a book and released two new-age opera albums.

She’s Even Considering Changing Her Entire Lifestyle

Valeria’s obsession with new-age theories and her spiritual journey has caused her to want to make even more drastic changes in her life. In 2014 she said that she was interested in adopting “Breatharianism.” The religion believes that you only need light and air to survive, which means getting rid of all food and even sometimes water.

Most scientists call the religion a “deadly pseudoscience,” but Valeria is still interested in making the switch. She has held off for now from making the dangerous commitment. Hopefully, she doesn’t risk her life when she might have a career in this next industry.

Valeria Might Have A Future In Hollywood

Since her 2007 pageant win, the media has become obsessed with Valeria’s unique appearance and lifestyle. In 2013, she was featured in an episode of Vice‘s “My Life Online.” The episode was aptly titled “Space Barbie.”

Valeria also landed her starring debut role in a feature film. The 2017 horror movie The Doll received pretty average ratings, but its plotline sounds perfect for Valeria. The Doll is about a pair of friends who order an escort that is actually a living doll created by a deranged scientist. Continue reading to see what Valeria’s plans for the future are.

One Day She Hopes To Leave Ukraine For The Western World

Valeria has made it clear that she does not see herself living in Ukraine for much longer. Since Russia began the war against Ukraine in the Donbas region, she has had to move to Moscow.

When the GQ interviewer asked if she’d ever return to Ukraine, she was very against it. Valeria said that she tends to “cut off anything I don’t need.” She believes that the people of Ukraine don’t respect her enough and questioned: “Why waste myself on this?” Valeria said she hopes to move to the United States or Mexico.

Her Best Friend Olga Will Be By Her Side The Entire Time

Luckily for Valeria, she has had a few friends that have stayed by her side throughout her entire rise to stardom. Olga “Dominika” Oleynik is often mistaken as Valeria’s sister because they look so similar. They met online and now host spiritual lectures together.

Here, Valeria (left) and Dominika (right) prove that their long, blonde hair and doll-like eyes are entrancing enough to charm snakes. Valeria hopes that Dominika might move to America together. Whatever the future holds for Valeria, you can be sure that she will continue turning heads and drumming up controversy.